We are a Fiduciary. We put our clients’ interests first and avoid conflicts of interest to the extent possible.

We are fee-only advisors, which means our fee varies with the assets we manage for you and may include service-specific or planning engagement fees. We accept no product commissions of any kind, and our economic interests are aligned with your long-term financial well-being.

We serve clients throughout the United States, expatriates, world travelers, and foreign nationals. 

Our clients are diverse in their interests, occupations, and the complexity of their financial lives. It is our pleasure to work with individuals who understand our value proposition and with whom we have a good rapport–regardless of asset level. That said, many of our clients are professionals, executives, and business owners with net worths in the range of $2M-$50M, depending on the stage of their journey.

Magnolia Private Wealth, LLC is registered under the Investment Act of 1940 with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The SEC protects investors like you by ensuring disclosure, providing industry regulation and enforcement, policy- and rule-making, and investor education.

Financial markets are a complex dynamical system. The risks and opportunities our investors face evolve with technology and competition for capital among individual businesses, fund sponsors, intermediaries, and others and--critically--economic and financial cycles. In other words, things change. Against a background of constant change, we seek to provide clients the most relevant solution to their needs–both actuarial and in their broader capacity as human beings. In terms of portfolio construction, this includes (naturally) operating within each client’s individual parameters for risk, complexity, and liquidity, and optimizing risk-adjusted returns–considering both statistical measures and the various hidden risks that a careful study of history and a deep respect for operational due diligence would imply. This leads us to some distinctive views on diversification, how to marry public and private assets, and other specific elements of investment philosophy you will see in our writing and in your conversations with us. We’ll mention one here: the Herculean efforts of many managers and advisors to deliver “alpha” (or outperformance) are time poorly spent relative to clear opportunities to enhance returns through lower fees, expenses, taxes, and other operational efficiencies.

We directly manage and allocate client portfolios. We partner with fund managers but perform extensive due diligence on their strategies and their organizations. It is both a requirement and a privilege for us to travel extensively to meet with portfolio managers and research directors, and engage with peer firms and professional associations to seek out the most relevant, sometimes highly distinctive, investment opportunities for our clients, and to choose the right partners to help ensure their financial success.

In addition to stocks and bonds, we invest in a wide range of both public and private assets. These include the “major food groups” in both public and private markets: equity, credit, real estate, and infrastructure. We also invest in a range of liquid hedge fund-type strategies like managed futures and systematic global macro, as well as other specialty asset classes when they are able to provide clients either superior returns or enhanced diversification.

In the same kinds of investments we choose for our clients.

After a series of consultations, and subject to ongoing conversations, we will seek to identify your needs (broadly understood) and strive to meet them subject to your needs for liquidity over time, your tolerance for risk and complexity, and your personal preferences. The best investment strategy is one in which you have conviction and can stick with for the long run.

Yes, always. The returns investors are able to actually enjoy are returns net of fees, expenses, and taxes.

Your objectives are our sole benchmark. However, every individual strategy we deploy in your investment portfolio is subject to ongoing evaluation against other ways to capture its return stream more efficiently, e.g., individual indices to the extent they are investable. Each strategy must also be additive to a portfolio by enhancing return potential, lowering overall risk, or both.

We work as a team of professionals and seek to serve our clients seamlessly and without silos. This may mean that one of us represents your “primary” relationship, but in many instances the principal best equipped to deal with a specific matter will serve you as the need arises. 

Collectively, the principals possess a wide range of industry-specific and other professional and educational accreditations and achievements. Our recognition within the wealth management industry comes in the form of invitations from professional associations, serving on panel discussions, and responding to media inquiries. Please see our team biographies and citations in financial media.

The primary custodian for our clients’ assets is Charles Schwab & Company. However, we can and do participate in other custodial arrangements for specific client needs.

Yes.

Yes. While Magnolia Private Wealth does not provide tax or legal advice, we have (and will) coach clients through simple and/or complex transactions and collaborate with their respective tax and legal counsel.

Yes. We serve clients with foundations, participate in their governance, and manage foundation assets. We can help you think through the full range of legacy opportunities, including foundations and donor-advised funds (DAF).

Yes.

• Am I protected?

• How much should I be saving?

• How much will I have?

• When can I retire?

• Which assets should be held in which accounts?

• What is the best way to pay for my children's education?

• How can I optimize my tax situation?

• How should I transfer assets to my heirs?

• Where should I withdraw assets from and in what order?

Yes. This is what we do.